| 1. |
- Fremling, Christoffer, et al.
(author)
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The rise and fall of the Type Ib supernova iPTF13bvn Not a massive Wolf-Rayet star
- 2014
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In: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 565
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Context. We investigate iPTF13bvn, a core-collapse (CC) supernova (SN) in the nearby spiral galaxy NGC 5806. This object was discovered by the intermediate Palomar Transient Factory (iPTF) very close to the estimated explosion date and was classified as a stripped-envelope CC SN, likely of Type Ib. Furthermore, a possible progenitor detection in pre-explosion Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images was reported, making this the only SN Ib with such an identification. Based on the luminosity and color of the progenitor candidate, as well as on early-time spectra and photometry of the SN, it was argued that the progenitor candidate is consistent with a single, massive Wolf-Rayet (WR) star. Aims. We aim to confirm the progenitor detection, to robustly classify the SN using additional spectroscopy, and to investigate if our follow-up photometric and spectroscopic data on iPTF13bvn are consistent with a single-star WR progenitor scenario. Methods. We present a large set of observational data, consisting of multi-band light curves (UBVRI, g' r' i' z') and optical spectra. We perform standard spectral line analysis to track the evolution of the SN ejecta. We also construct a bolometric light curve and perform hydrodynamical calculations to model this light curve to constrain the synthesized radioactive nickel mass and the total ejecta mass of the SN. Late-time photometry is analyzed to constrain the amount of oxygen. Furthermore, image registration of pre- and post-explosion HST images is performed. Results. Our HST astrometry confirms the location of the progenitor candidate of iPTF13bvn, and follow-up spectra securely classify this as a SN Ib. We use our hydrodynamical model to fit the observed bolometric light curve, estimating the total ejecta mass to be 1.9 M-circle dot and the radioactive nickel mass to be 0.05 M-circle dot. The model fit requires the nickel synthesized in the explosion to be highly mixed out in the ejecta. We also find that the late-time nebular r'-band luminosity is not consistent with predictions based on the expected oxygen nucleosynthesis in very massive stars. Conclusions. We find that our bolometric light curve of iPTF13bvn is not consistent with the previously proposed single massive WR-star progenitor scenario. The total ejecta mass and, in particular, the late-time oxygen emission are both significantly lower than what would be expected from a single WR progenitor with a main-sequence mass of at least 30 M-circle dot.
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| 2. |
- Gal-Yam, Avishay, et al.
(author)
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A Wolf-Rayet-like progenitor of SN 2013cu from spectral observations of a stellar wind
- 2014
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In: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 509:7501, s. 471-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The explosive fate of massive Wolf-Rayet stars(1) (WRSs) is a key open question in stellar physics. An appealing option is that hydrogen-deficient WRSs are the progenitors of some hydrogen-poor supernova explosions of types IIb, Ib and Ic (ref. 2). A blue object, having luminosity and colours consistent with those of some WRSs, has recently been identified in pre-explosion images at the location of a supernova of type Ib (ref. 3), but has not yet been conclusively determined to have been the progenitor. Similar work has so far only resulted in non-detections(4). Comparison of early photometric observations of type Ic supernovae with theoretical models suggests that the progenitor stars had radii of less than 1012 centimetres, as expected for some WRSs(5). The signature of WRSs, their emission line spectra, cannot be probed by such studies. Here we report the detection of strong emission lines in a spectrum of type IIb supernova 2013cu (iPTF13ast) obtained approximately 15.5 hours after explosion (by 'flash spectroscopy', which captures the effects of the supernova explosion shock breakout flash on material surrounding the progenitor star). We identify Wolf-Rayet-like wind signatures, suggesting a progenitor of the WN(h) subclass (those WRSs with winds dominated by helium and nitrogen, with traces of hydrogen). The extent of this dense wind may indicate increased mass loss from the progenitor shortly before its explosion, consistent with recent theoretical predictions(6).
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| 3. |
- Vreeswijk, Paul M., et al.
(author)
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THE HYDROGEN-POOR SUPERLUMINOUS SUPERNOVA iPTF 13ajg AND ITS HOST GALAXY IN ABSORPTION AND EMISSION
- 2014
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 797:1, s. 24-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present imaging and spectroscopy of a hydrogen-poor superluminous supernova (SLSN) discovered by the intermediate Palomar Transient Factory, iPTF 13ajg. At a redshift of z = 0.7403, derived from narrow absorption lines, iPTF 13ajg peaked at an absolute magnitude of M-u,M-AB = -22.5, one of the most luminous supernovae to date. The observed bolometric peak luminosity of iPTF 13ajg is 3.2 x 10(44) erg s(-1), while the estimated total radiated energy is 1.3 x 10(51) erg. We detect narrow absorption lines of Mg I, Mg II, and Fe II, associated with the cold interstellar medium in the host galaxy, at two different epochs with X-shooter at the Very Large Telescope. From Voigt profile fitting, we derive the column densities log N(Mg I) = 11.94 +/- 0.06, log N(Mg II) = 14.7 +/- 0.3, and log N(Fe II) = 14.25 +/- 0.10. These column densities, as well as the Mg I and Mg II equivalent widths of a sample of hydrogen-poor SLSNe taken from the literature, are at the low end of those derived for gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) whose progenitors are also thought to be massive stars. This suggests that the environments of hydrogen-poor SLSNe and GRBs are different. From the nondetection of Fe II fine-structure absorption lines, we derive a lower limit on the distance between the supernova and the narrow-line absorbing gas of 50 pc. The neutral gas responsible for the absorption in iPTF 13ajg exhibits a single narrow component with a low velocity width, Delta V = 76 km s(-1), indicating a low-mass host galaxy. No host galaxy emission lines are detected, leading to an upper limit on the unobscured star formation rate (SFR) of SFR[O II] < 0.07 M-circle dot yr(-1). Late-time imaging shows the iPTF 13ajg host galaxy to be faint, with g(AB) approximate to 27.0 and R-AB >= 26.0 mag, corresponding to M-B,M-Vega greater than or similar to -17.7 mag.
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